Myth In The Dark Knight Trilogy

"The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance." 
                                                                                                                                   - Aristotle                         



Bruce Wayne's character in the The Dark Knight (TDK) trilogy follows a growth pattern that parallels the development of the psyche and its transformation in several of the world's heroes myth. The myth in TDK trilogy is steeped in the idea of renunciation, overcoming several kinds of fear and transcending self-interest to identify with a larger cause for the good. These are recurring themes in several of popular heroes myths from across the world.  


          

Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne and Batman in TDK

During his childhood years, he falls in to a well filled with bats,while playing with his friend, and acquires a deep fear of them. His father's helping hand gets him out this predicament and it etches a strong memory of his parents being there for him during his early childhood. When they go to a theatre, his fear of bats brings the family out. There both his parents are killed by a petty criminal and Bruce is consumed by this guilt though out his early life. Over the years it develops in to a deep hatred for that criminal and he seeks revenge. When he fails in an attempt to kill that guy and confesses about that to his friend Rachel, she guides him to an understanding of what justice is about.

She points to him that justice is more than personal revenge and he has no clue about what he is dealing with. This prods him to renounce all his wealth and live as a petty criminal to understand the minds of criminals. This leads him to the league of shadows where he faces another test of his commitment to his ideals. When he is asked to murder a petty criminal as a punishment, he refuses to do that and instead fights with the whole group and escapes from there.


When he returns to Gotham, he finds that things have become worse and decides to fight crime from outside the system. He commits himself to this as the system that is supposed to fight crime itself has become corrupt. This sort of vigilantism in art seems to be a repeating theme in several of today's movies. It may be some sort of response to the prevalent corruption seen in several systems of governance across the world.

Towards the end, even though he confesses his love for Rachel he still keeps distance owing to his commitment to the fight and the inherent dangers involved with that. In this part, the personal journey of the character involves overcoming some fears acquired during his early childhood and realizing that the idea of justice is more than just personal revenge. It is also about committing to a path, in this case fighting for justice. This is how the Batman Trilogy begins.

 

Christian Bale as Batman in Batman Begins

 
In the second part, he encounters two opposing scenario. On the one side, he sees the growth of Harvey Dent who is willing to fight crime from with in the system and offers a face of hope to people. And on the other side, he encounters an agent of chaos in the joker, who just wants to see the world burn for its own sake.

The unstoppable growth of Joker and his destruction strains the city badly that people want Batman to give in as several people are killed for his surrender to Joker. With Alfred's help he decides to be patient and give in to the demands of the situation rather than to give in to the demands of a criminal.

Heath Ledger as Joker in The Dark Knight

 

There is a dialogue in the movie where Dent tells reporters that the night is darkest before the dawn and it is important not to lose hope. This statement sort of hints to the idea of cyclical growth of yin and yang forces in the society as described in the Taoist philosophy. Bruce giving in to the demands of the situation parallels the Taoist wisdom of doing the right action at the right time.

At one point in the movie, a conflicting scenario arises where he has to choose between his love Rachel and Harvey Dent to save one of them. At this moment, he looks beyond his own love and saves Harvey Dent as he believes in the greater good he can bring to people and sustain their hope. This is in one way honoring Rachel who taught him to look beyond his own self interest and saving the man she loves. This is a complicated moral decision for which he pays a huge cost in the later part of the story.

At the end, even Harvey Dent falls victim to the devious plans of Joker and turns against his previous friends. At a point, when Bruce has to fight Dent to save Gordon's son, he accidentally gets killed. Bruce takes the blame for this murder and goes in to hiding at the end of this part.


In the third part of trilogy, Bruce stays alone avoiding much contact with the society and sort of grieves for Rachel over several years. Gordon is also consumed by his guilt for hiding the real events surrounding Dent's death and placing the blame on Batman.

Things soon take a turn for the worse when strong destructive forces start building up strength beneath the surface. The stakes are higher in this part with the destructive forces led by Bane acquiring even a nuclear weapon at one point in the movie.

Tom Hardy as Bane with Batman

Bruce's financial assets are taken away from him and then his friend Alfred too leaves him not being able to see him suffer. When he is psychologically bruised, he is led into a trap by Cat Woman when Bane breaks his back in a fist fight. His identity is compromised and later all his weapons, gadgetry and property are taken away from him. His friends are later captured and made to work to weaponize the nuclear reactor. He is then put in a deep cave prison with several others.

The events here represent one of the components of many a hero's myth. It is overcoming the fear of death and at the same time using the fear of losing loved ones and the people you care about and transforming it into a force. It requires a deep acceptance of  our own limitations to develop a calm required to overcome such a grave situation.

The sequence when Bruce fails to jump across a deep gap in the wall repeatedly portrays this situation very well. His prison mate tells him to take the leap with out a rope that will keep his fear of death and its consequences alive in him. Only after realizing that he is able to make the jump to get out the cave and rescue others.

Later when everything in the city is under the control of Bane's men, he gathers force and helps them in their fight against Bane's men. In the end by saving the city and himself, he honors his friend Alfred's wishes.

The movie ends with the idea that the same heroic spirit is present in all of us awaiting expression in its varied forms. The way the recurring themes in heroes myth are portrayed in this trilogy makes it a classic in recent fiction in several ways.